The project has a lot of heat at the studio, which in late March paid $3 million for the spec script by James Vanderbilt, who is producing along with Bradley Fischer, Laeta Kalogridis, Kloser and Larry Franco.

Another reason for the heat: There is a competing project titled Olympus Has Fallen from Millennium with Gerard Butler attached to star and Antoine Fuqua attached to direct.

Both deal with a Die Hard-style scenario of having the group of antagonists take over a building, in this case the White House, and having one man fight with limited resources against impossible odds and extraordinary obstacles.

Tatum would play a Secret Service agent who happens to be a single dad and must save the president when 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is taken over by paramilitary group.

Columbia plans to go into production this summer. Reid Carolin, Tatum's producing partner at the duo's Iron Horse Productions banner, will act as an exec producer.

The actor is coming off back-to-back hits with romantic drama The Vow and Jump Street, the latter of which Tatum starred in with Jonah Hill and proved to be one of his biggest hits, grossing more than $135 million domestically and propelling Tatum to the top of the in-demand list. He next stars in Steven Soderbergh’s Magic Mike, which Warners releases June 29.